Hope you didn’t blink, because it is already week two in the National Football League. Tonight we get to see the New York Jets battle against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Although both teams are undefeated, there are still plenty of skeptics as each team won with a late field goal in week one.
With a lot of question marks on offense for the Jets and Patriots, I predict this will be a low scoring defensive struggle with the winning team decided by who wins the turnover battle.
Who Does Brady Trust?
In week one Stevan Ridley was understandably benched after two first half fumbles in Buffalo. He will look to redeem himself this week and will get the opportunity with backup Shane Vereen having had wrist surgery earlier this week.
Ridley will be facing a stingy Jets defense that only gave up 65 yards last week to Doug Martin. He will struggle to find running room but will get enough carries to reach 100 yards and 1 TD tonight.
The Patriots are thin at wide receiver and tight end, with both Danny Amendola and Rob Gronkowski doubtful for the game. If Tom Brady is to move the ball tonight he will be relying on his slot receiver Julian Edelman. Look for Brady to have a subpar night and Edelman to lead the team with receiving yards.
Do the Jets Have Any Luck Left?
Last week the Jets were gifted a last second penalty that put them into field goal range to kick the game winner against the Buccaneers. Tonight is likely to be a different game, with Bellichick’s well-disciplined team. They will have to play a perfect game to win this one.
Santonio Holmes came out of week one without any setbacks and looks to play more tonight. He will likely see more than the three targets from last week, especially with Jeremy Kerley ruled out. Look for a solid game from Holmes and safety valve Kellen Winslow.
Geno Smith surprisingly played better than expected in his first game against a very good Buccaneers defense. More important than his stat line was the fact that he showed the ability to win and win in clutch manner. He will look to do the same in week two and I predict he actually has a better stat line tonight.
The Jets Take the Win
I am predicting an upset tonight in Foxboro. Although the Patriots have the upper hand, I believe Rex Ryan will have a strong game plan to stop the depleted Patriot offense. Look for the Jets Defense to force a couple turnovers and possibly even a pick six.
The final score will be Jets 20 Patriots 17.